Technology is a constantly evolving ecosystem within which everything it encounters is presented with the option to adapt or risk becoming antiquated. At ACP we believe this holds true for the Manufacturing sector, as well as the people who drive it. History has shown time and time again, that industries only remain competitive if they are willing to adopt and make real use of new technologies that drive efficiency, productivity, and profitability. Those who choose to ignore or fight against the inevitable evolution of innovation often become mere footnotes in the history of pioneers and juggernauts that continue to thrive today.
For over a century, the basic premise of the moving assembly line pioneered by Ford Motor Company has essentially remained the same. Over time, automated processes have been added and improved upon to increase speed and output, but the true improvement to the basic model has been the platforms created to monitor and manage the systems that drive those processes. Because of this, and the proliferation of the global economy, the very basics of manufacturing must now be reexamined and challenged to move forward from the Industrial Age into the Modern Computing Age.
The days of running a manufacturing facility that stands alone on an island or operates within a vacuum is over. The modern factory will have to be more nimble, able to adapt quickly to changes in manufacturing techniques and the demand for customized products that can be produced in line with current demand.
The days of running a manufacturing facility that stands alone on an island or operates within a vacuum is over. The modern factory will have to be more nimble, able to adapt quickly to changes in manufacturing techniques and the demand for customized products that can be produced in line with current demand. These facilities will need to be able to expand quickly or even be replicated within short time constraints, to stay one step ahead of the competition. And even more importantly, they must do so in conjunction with other facilities and operations that are equally adaptive.
ACP also believes that mobile computing is the evolving technology that will meet the demands of the modern plant floor and offer the agility required to drive it. We believe that what modern manufacturers need, is a system platform that will allow them to move toward this mobile future with as little disruption to their current process as possible. ACP’s ThinManager is an Adaptive Platform Technology (APT) that is designed to allow facilities to move into this new mobile industrial evolution at a pace that is reasonable for their particular facilities.
This is essential because far too often a technology is introduced that forces a “leap” forward from the industry standard…and more often than not, that technology is nothing more than a bridge that spans what was, and what is to come. This is why ThinManager has positioned itself as a platform that can drive the processes of today, as well as offering the mobile agility that will be required tomorrow.
Using what we call a relevant information delivery system, ThinManager will soon offer a brand new add-on technology called Relevance. This Adaptive Mobile Platform (AMP) will allow plant managers and operators to have customized computing experiences that are completely relevant for the work they perform, regardless of the specific environmental demands of their facilities or the computer hardware they currently deploy. ThinManager Relevance will offer a new way to organize applications, data, and users. More importantly, it will allow for delivery of that data based on a user’s ID, location, a specific time or an event—or any combination of these criteria. ThinManager delivers this relevant information to virtually any device including PCs, thin clients and mobile tablets or smart phones. Now, operators have the ability to perform their duties, react to changes in production and solve problems from any location.
No matter where your facility is today in this new industrial evolution, ThinManager’s Adaptive Platform Technology will allow you to become the nimble company of tomorrow by letting you choose when and how you move your process into the future. Regardless of the current hardware or software solutions you currently deploy, ThinManager will extend your ability to control how you deliver information and how you interact with your manufacturing environment. No other platform can offer a path that allows you go from where you are today, to where you want to be tomorrow, like ThinManager.
Find your path through the Industrial Evolution at http://www.thindustrial.com
Tom Jordan
ACP – ThinManager
